The First and Greatest Victory is to Conquer Yourself
by writersblock159
Summary: Maleficent's time as a lizard didn't affect her as much as she thought it would. True, it took fifty years to find someone with a modicum of intelligence to change her back, but still... She still loves her daughter, and she's more than ready to see how her little girl is doing without her mother around. After all a demi-goddess/demi-fae still has quite a bit to learn. One-shot.


**Blame Airilymusing on tumblr, it's her fault this isn't _any_ of the works I've been working on. **

**Also blame the muse: she's on a world tour and I've only caught her twice. She stopped by after Aer did and had her way with me. Ergo we got a semi-beta'd fanfiction I wrote over the course of a Sunday.**

**Disclaimer: Not Disney, don't get paid enough to be rich, don't own Descendants.**

* * *

_"...We perfectly align while we gaze from far away, and separately watch the day come rising across the horizon in our minds." _

_Standing By - Pentatonix_

* * *

The terrarium was normally devoid of movement.

That wasn't to say Maleficent was incapable of moving: more like uninterested. Geckos, as a general rule, were not a fast moving species without cause, and this particular lizard was kept in the sunlight with regular feeding and no predators inside its cage.

Why would it want to move?

Today however, its regular schedule of lying in the sun had been disrupted by a flurry of uncharacteristic action outside of its home, constantly interrupting Maleficent's favorite time of the day, (tied only with feeding time) sunning itself in the morning glow. Annoyed, the lizard rearranged itself, trying to find the perfect spot which would provide uninterrupted warmth on its scales, eventually settling in a much-too-small pool of light that had yet to be covered. As the gecko closed its eyes, reveling in the warm sun filtering onto its back words began to filter through the glass.

"... Truly beautiful Mal."

Opening its eyes, the lizard took in the scene in front of it. The thing, Mal, it sounded familiar. Why did it- oh right. Mal was the word that usually meant food. Was there food that would be given early? Ooooh, that would make this disappointing morning much better. Fighting through the glare that reflected on the walls of its home, often preventing it from looking outside, the gecko saw standing in the window, the one who brought food, and an Other. The Food Bringer was clad in a cascade of clothing, with fabric over its deep purple fur. The dress seemed to be for some important event. A part of Maleficent felt as though there was something important about that, something that it should be part of. Lizards were not built for introspection however, and the reptile dismissed the feeling as unimportant. The Food Bringer was busy, hopefully it would not forget to feed her before it left.

That was not fun.

Closing its eyes, the gecko continued to listen as the Food Bringer and the Other spoke.

"I wonder if he'll like it, I mean it's hardly my usual outfit, is it?"

"Mal, he'd have to be blind not to like you in this. And I'm pretty sure that if you arrived in your usual clothes everyone would have a fit."

Laughter punctuated that remark. "Yeah, I suppose. The bride wears dark colors to her own wedding. The press would have a field day with that."

"I'm sure…" The ruffling of fabric was the only sound for a moment, then the Other spoke again, "I'm so happy for you." Its voice was quieter, and sounded like there was something in the way of it speaking. Curious, the lizard opened its eyes again, seeing that the two were now embracing.

"Careful, you don't want to start crying. If you cry, I'll cry, and then we'll have to re-do our makeup." The Food Bringer was running a claw-hand through the Other's bluish-black fur.

"I know." The Other pulled away, wiping its eyes. "It's too late for me though, you'd better save yourself."

The high pitched noise that followed caused the gecko to wince. Giggling, it believed the sound was called, hurt its ears.

The Food Bringer nudged the Other out of it's home, saying something about cleaning up. Maleficent perked up as it noticed the Food Bringer was approaching the terrarium. As the purple furred one sat next to the lizard's home, the gecko felt happy. The Food Bringer would talk for a bit, and then it would drop some food into the lizard's home. All it had to do was wait.

"Well mom, I guess this is it. I'm going to be married today." There was that feeling again, as though Maleficent was missing something important. "I guess I always thought it'd be different. I know you always said that you would rule before me, so maybe that's what I think is missing." The Food Bringer sighed, and then laughed. "Dad scared Ben yesterday. Said if he ever hurt me, then king or not he would have a god to answer to. I gather Ben took it pretty well. Better than the three day bachelor party Jay and Carlos arranged for him. I guess he's _still_ finding out things he did during that party, and Jay has pictures of course." The lizard didn't really care much about a Jay, birds were annoying. It was hungry, there was going to be food right? Eventually? "I told you all about my bachelorette party, nothing new there. Jane insists that there's things I don't remember, but I'm pretty sure I remember it all..." The Food Bringer trailed off. The gecko glared up trying to will the obnoxious human to feed it. "I miss you mom." the next words from the Food Bringer were quiet. "I've been watching the others with their parents, and it reminds me how much I lost when you transformed; and now it's my _wedding _and- and I just wish you were there too. Maybe crying in the front row, or more likely just watching with that smirk of yours as I say my vows." A sniff punctuated the sentence. "I'd even take you leading in an army of darkness during the ceremony, just to see you, you know? How pathetic is that?" A few shaky deep breaths punctuated that statement. The lizard tried to ignore the feelings of… well it didn't really know what the feelings were. Sadness, obviously, but it didn't recognize the other ones. One felt like sadness directed toward itself, and the other felt like it was almost-but-not-quite happy toward the Food Bringer. Doing the mental equivalent of a shrug, the reptile tried to push the feelings away, only to have them not budge.

"Anyway mom, I just wanted to tell you I'll probably be gone for a week or two. Jane knows to feed you, and has promised to stop by every day to do so." The lizard wasn't really listening anymore. Magic was coursing through it, and where there had been just a simple gecko in its mind a few moments ago, there was now a sorceress slowly taking over its mind. It needed to get back in control! The Food Bringer was getting the food! It could eat soon!

Suddenly the thoughts of food were gone, and in its place was an ancient fairy, still trapped in a lizard's body.

The Food- No that was her daughter, Mal. How had she not recognized her? Why was she dressed up as if she was getting married? Why was she so much older? What was she giving her? "Here's some extra food mom. I'm sorry, but I don't know if Jane will be able to come back after the reception, so I'm going to give you some extra just in case." Mal closed the top of the terrarium and walked to the door. Looking back, Maleficent made out the words, "...Love you mom," before her daughter left, closing the door quietly behind her.

Carefully, not wanting to draw attention to herself in case someone came in Maleficent made her way to the top of her new prison. Her first thought had been to transform into her own form, but apparently whatever magic her daughter had cast on her was keeping her as a gecko. Ignoble to be sure, but surprisingly useful, seeing as her first order of business was to get out of here as subtly as possible. Maleficent was far from stupid. Her daughter was in a wedding dress, and someone else was supposed to take care of her pet while she was gone. (And oh how that galled her! Her! The most powerful of the Fairies, being forced to be someone's pet! Even though she had been doing it unknowingly it bothered her!) That meant that if she was going to escape it would need to happen _tonight_ when everyone was far too drunk and happy to notice a small lizard leaving the castle grounds.

Balancing her log on her rock, she created a _very_ delicate ladder, which she wasted no time climbing up, pushing on the top of her prison in an attempt to open it and climb out.

Her log fell over.

Growling, the fairy rearranged her impromptu ladder, finally getting it to stay in one corner. As she was about to climb up and escape, she felt a sudden pang in her stomach, reminding her that she had yet to eat anything this day.

Glaring, she looked over the 'food' which was a hodgepodge of assorted bug pieces. Ignoring the indignity of eating these things, she would _not _think of it as food, (and would diligently avoid thinking about how good it tasted) she instead reveled in how evil her daughter was; forcing a hated enemy into a situation where they had no choice but to eat a...less than savory meal might not not be _entirely _evil per se, but as she'd often told her daughter: it was the little things that made one _truly _despicable.

Eventually she had eaten her fill, and was, again, scaling her log in an attempt to escape. This time her ladder lasted a bit longer, and whatever was on top of her prison actually shifted, giving the little fairy-turned-lizard a thrill of success. Partial success was still success she reminded herself, carefully adjusting her ladder for another attempt.

The third time proved to be the charm, and Maleficent found herself outside of her clear prison. She wasted no time, racing to where the desk was and tearing through the different papers until she found one with a date.

It had been an incredibly long time if that _was _in fact the date.

As she read different papers she found several things out about her daughter.

Apparently the little traitor had found out who her father was, the details were suitably vague, something Maleficent was pleased with. Her daughter was getting married today, that wasn't news, but the fact that she had already dealt with two different villains, and a hero made the lizard reconsider her idea to immediately track down her daughter and hash things out.

No, it was time for the age old 'tactical retreat' that every villain knew so well. Maleficent would admit, even if only to herself, that her lack of magic was concerning. There was no doubt in the mother's mind that Mal was marrying for love- or some such reason- and there was no reason to crash a wedding when she couldn't do anything to the poor fool that was marrying her daughter.

Carefully making her way to the window, the gecko took one last look around the room, before giving the barest hint of a smirk, and slipping out.

She had a curse to break, and information to gather.

* * *

Nearly fifty years later she returned to Auradon.

The city was clearly doing well, but a dark and stormy night will impede on someone's ability to tell that. Instead, clad in a dark cloak, Maleficent found herself carefully making her way through the soggy streets of the capitol, looking for a place to stay. Eventually she simply chose a tavern at random, carefully entering and looking around.

The place was tastefully decorated, and the bar itself was sparsely populated. Even as she was moving to ask for a place to stay, a flash of blue caught her attention. Making her way up carefully to the woman, who was nursing what looked like a whisky, she was surprised to see her suspicions were confirmed.

"Maleficent." Fairy Godmother greeted her without turning around, nearly causing the fairy to cast a spell. Only the tone of the blue fairy stopped her. The voice of the good fairy held none of the anger or hatred that the sorceress had expected. "I wondered if you would be back this century. I thought you would wait just a bit longer to gloat however." The woman took a gulp of her drink.

"I never took you to be a drinker." Maleficent carefully sat next to her old adversary, half an eye on the door should she need to escape. While the two were not the bitter enemies Jafar and Aladdin were, they certainly had remained on opposite sides of enough scraps to safely call each other well respected opponents.

In their heads at least.

The blue fairy snorted. "I suppose you can thank your daughter for that."

"Mal?"

"You have another one?" The horror filled voice of her old enemy nearly had Maleficent agreeing just to upset the woman, but she badly needed information, and despite being a wanted criminal the blue clad fairy had yet to actually act against her.

"No, just Mal."

"Thank the gods." Fairy Godmother downed the rest of her drink before signaling for more.

"Searching for the meaning of life?"

An eye roll was her only response.

"Why the drinking then?"

"Because I haven't gotten drunk in almost a thousand years, and I will admit when I'm licked." The blue clad fairy took another swallow before continuing. "You know, I have to hand it to you Maleficent, I really thought that you were defeated. Then when you escaped, I genuinely thought you were on your own. Until last year."

"What happened last year?"

"You don't know?" The blue fairy glanced up, looking through the darkness surrounding her enemy's face. "Oh my! She got you too!" A quiet chuckle bubbled up for a moment.

"_Blue_." Maleficent said warningly. She was many things, but patient was rarely one of them.

"Your daughter, the queen-" Fairy Godmother began, only to be cut off.

"The queen?"

"Well, yes, did you not know?"

Maleficent felt a grin stretch across her face. "No, I didn't. Please continue."

"Queen Maleficent refused to abdicate the throne last year. Said she would name an heir 'soon.' Of course since she barely looks like she's aged a day since she took the throne, no one is concerned about it." Blue took another drink. "This morning I recommended that she abdicate and enjoy her time left, and she convinced me to take a walk with her."

Maleficent was still on the 'Queen Maleficent' part of the conversation. A title she'd never desired at first, but had eventually come to want after the formation of the United States of Auradon. The fact her daughter had it, well it made her heart beat just a bit faster.

Though whether that was pride, or excitement against a new opponent she wasn't sure.

Yet.

"I joined her and Jane, my daughter, for a walk. She explained how she appreciated all I had done for her, how she was more than impressed with my work at Auradon Prep." Maleficent was listening again, nodding as her old enemy described her daughter going through the old villain bait and switch. "She recommended that I give the school my full attention. When I countered that I had always served the king, she nodded and pointed out that I _had._ She then introduced my daughter to me as the new royal magical advisor. When I fought to stay I was… shown the error of my ways."

Maleficent raised her eyebrows. "Oh?" That was _not_ what she had expected. Blue was possibly as powerful as Maleficent herself, to have her beaten was… unexpected.

"It was as though they had known I might attack. Jane stayed out of it, fortunately, but Queen Maleficent defeated me."

"How." It wasn't a question, it was an order.

"I won't give you a detailed account. Suffice to say when she pointed out at the end that she is half-fairy and half-god I realized just why I lost."

Maleficent stilled. Of course. Hades _was_ a god, and demigods were well established as powerful forces. Normally when fairies or gods had children they were half-human. What Mal was… "She's an immortal."

"Just come to that realization now? Didn't think of that when you had her?"

Maleficent motioned to the barman. "Whatever she has, I want something stronger." She said pointing to the fairy next to her. A moment later a glass was set in front of her, the bottle of something with an X on it was left next to it at the dark fairy's wave.

"It explains...everything." Blue continued, not even really looking at her drinking partner. "Why Auroria's uprising was so brief after she got involved. Why Olympus has issues with her. How she became queen…"

Maleficent was on her third drink, when she finally came to a realization. "I win."

"What?"

"I win." The dark fairy couldn't stop the high pitched laugh (it would be a cold day in the underworld before one such as her did something as unflattering as _giggle_) that burst out of her. "I win! I won!"

The blue fairy was looking at her as though she'd lost her mind. "Your daughter is the one on the throne Maleficent, not you."

"That _was_ the long term goal." The evil fairy waved her hand dismissively. "The important thing is, now she's in charge."

"And you're still her _estranged _mother."

"For now," Maleficent toasted her next drink, thinking of her young daughter as she did so, "but I have no doubt that I can get her to come around eventually."

The Fairy Godmother's mocking laugh cut through her thoughts. "You daughter is every bit like you. She only shares power with those she deems worthy. I doubt that the mother she _imprisoned_ will be first on the list of people she wants to share power with."

"Perhaps." Maleficent acknowledged, thoughtfully sipping her drink. '_I believe I'll just have to meet with my daughter and see how she's doing now.'_

* * *

'_There were times that I was waited on by those I visited,'_ The fairy thought, looking around the entrance hall. '_How times have changed that now I wait on others.'_ Though if it was for her daughter she would wait. _Mal may have enough power to defeat those around her, but if she thinks she is ruthless enough to have earned the use of her full name… I want to see why.'_

Maleficent had covered herself in her cloak, and given a fake name in order to gain a court with the king. She simply said that she had a problem with a law (she did actually, several come to think of it) and that she wished to discuss magic with the Queen. (Also the truth, much closer to the _actual_ reason for her visit.) A bit of compulsion magic and a bit of gold had gained her a meeting with the royal family.

"Madame Angelina?" The castle steward had returned. "The King and Queen will see you." Following at a steady pace, Maleficent prepared to enter the great hall where another king, and more importantly her daughter the queen, held court.

The hall was not nearly as impressive as she imagined it would be.

It was large, and banners from each of the kingdoms showed the many alliances and 'states' that were part of the U.S.A. But rather than a massive honor guard there were perhaps four knights stationed around the room. The banners themselves were obviously plain cloth, rather than the silk that would be expected in a palace such as this. The decorations were simple, which was actually a relief in Maleficent's opinion. Far too many kings believed that the best way to beautify something was through gaudy gold and silver so bright it might blind you. Still, for the seat of power of what was certainly an empire, it seemed… lacking.

The centerpiece of the hall was, as expected, the thrones. The kings throne was truly beautiful, made of what looked like a solid ruby that flowed into a luxurious seat. The man who sat there seemed far more relaxed than Maleficent imagined a King would if he was greeting an unknown visitor, but a glance at who sat on his right, and it was no wonder he was so confident.

Where King Ben looked regal, yet composed, despite his age, which the dark fairy would admit if she hadn't known his age, she would have guessed early forties, his queen was much more vibrant. Queen Mal... no- Queen _Maleficent_ was the fire to her husband's ice. Her throne seemed to be made of shaped obsidian, something her mother agreed with, and where the King seemed content to wait for 'Angelina' to approach, his counterpart seemed less than thrilled with the thought of sitting. Although Maleficent had often scolded her daughter for fidgeting, she knew why Mal had never enjoyed long periods of waiting. Villians, as a general rule, were proactive and liked to move around. Of course there was also a time and place for self control, something that she had not yet managed to teach her treacherous little dragon before she flew the nest.

Ah well, there would be time for that in the future. They were immortal after all.

Queen Maleficent looked barely into her prime, and the dark fairy had to admit that she had an excellent fashion sense. It was clear she had never outgrown her punk phase, but had learned to be more subtle about it, using vests, cuffs, and belts to accent what could only be described as a dueling outfit. As Maleficent continued to allow her eyes to wander over her daughter, taking in all of the changes, and admitting no small amount of pride she held for he only daughter, the woman in question suddenly stood.

"Announcing Lady Angelina, a traveling bard." The Queen didn't sit down. Maleficent saw her daughter's eyes narrow.

'_Oh this __**is**_ _interesting my daughter. Do you recognize me? What will you say if you do? What won't you say?'_ Maleficent bit back a laugh.

"Lady Angelina has requested court with you, Your Majesty the King, in regards to a law involving magic that has been recently passed." A law that she had glanced at dealing with the magic use in the kingdom. It was, if rumor was to be believed, one of the worst things that had happened to the kingdom recently. She was curious, if nothing else. The laws she _actually_ had problems with were something she wished to deal with later. "Lady Angelina also wishes to request knowledge from the Queen in regards to the use of magic." Maleficent gave the steward a dirty look that he couldn't see from inside her hood. That was _not _what she wanted to do. She wanted to dialogue as an _equal,_ not waste her time learning cantrips as though she was some four year old apprentice.

Before she could introduce herself, the Queen spoke. "Ben, leave."

'_I see you do recognize me, my daughter.'_

"Mal-" The King was clearly going to argue, but his wife shot him a look that married men recognized everywhere. It was that look that told him that it didn't matter what he thought he knew, she knew better, and if they fought about it she would still be right. "Very well." The King stood and embraced his Queen. Maleficent heard something pass between them, but couldn't make out what. A moment later, the King departed out a side door, his guards following.

"Follow, Seymor." The Queen told the steward, who was looking conflicted between following his monarch and staying to protect his Queen. Mal seemed to have made up his mind for him, and he bowed deeply before walking after the King's guard.

The silence that fell across the throne room was total. The two women looked over each other, both looking for some weakness, perceived or true. Finally Mal spoke.

"I presume if I tell you that your empty Terrarium was quite a mess to clean out you won't care."

"Hero quips Mal? I thought I taught you better than that." Maleficent dropped her cloak, revealing her horns.

"_Queen Maleficent._" Her daughter ground out. "I've lived long enough that I accepted my true name."

"Mhmmm," The dark fairy nodded, not caring in the slightest. "I heard you fired Blue. She was very upset about that you know, well done!"

Mal smiled, though something seemed… off about it, "The Fairy Godmother is certain that magic should be forgotten. Her daughter...isn't."

"It's not all politics though, is it darling?" Maleficent chuckled.

Mal began to walk toward her mother. "Not at all. We have five beautiful children. You were invited to every party, we just couldn't find you to give you an invitation." Left unsaid was the reason they couldn't find her.

"Oh how wonderful." Maleficent cooed. "I suppose that your in-laws are still doing well."

"Adam is dead three years. Belle is still going strong." Mal finally stopped, a mere ten feet between her and her mother. "Dad, of course, is only around during christmas, winter solstice and all that."

The dark fairy nodded, smiling. "Well done my daughter." The disbelieving look Mal sent her finally made her laugh. "Oh my dear, don't think that I'm not thrilled you won. You _are _my daughter after all. All I ever wanted was for us to rule-"

"But there is no us." The Queen interrupted. "There is no we, us, or our. At least not between you and I."

Maleficent felt her smile dim, the same pain as before cutting her to the quick as her daughter rejected her, just like before. "I suppose not." She took a deep breath, looking around the massive hall, mentally making note of where she could use as cover and such should a duel break out. "Your father, does he know?"

Mal looked confused. "Know what? That you escaped? Yes. That you're back? Possibly, depends on whether or not Ben-"

The dark fairy waved her hand, "No, no. I mean does your father know just how powerful you are?"

The words hung in the air for a moment.

"The only people that have any idea how powerful I am, are Fairy Godmother, Jane, and apparently you." Mal was looking calmly at her mother, apparently unconcerned that Maleficent knew such a well protected secret.

"When did you find out?"

"After meeting with Merlin, shortly after your escape. He was the one who explained that it was my inexperience that had me turning you entirely into a gecko," her daughter shrugged apologetically. "Ooops."

The two continued to stare each other down, and finally Maleficent broke the silence. "I suppose this is the part where you try to capture me again." Mal's slow head shake caused the older sorceress to raise her eyebrows.

"I don't need to."

"And why is that."

"Because, Mom, you don't pose a threat." Okay, ouch.

"Why do you think that?"

"You said that all you wanted was for me to rule. Therefore I can safely assume that you don't want to wrest the throne away from Ben and I during this lifetime at least." Mal began to circle her mother. Maleficent braced herself for an attack, wishing she had her staff. "Taking it a step further, your past crimes, which would have seen you sent to the isle, have _technically _been pardoned." Mal finished her circle. "Finally, you often said that Fairy Godmother was the closest to your power," Her eyes narrowed and glowed green, "and trust me when I say, the daughter of an archfey and the god of death is more than capable of kicking you up and down this continent."

When put that way, Maleficent understood why her daughter had finally begun calling herself by her full name. The dark fairy wasn't done yet though. "So I'm free to go?"

"I'd encourage it."

"Well then, _Queen Maleficent_," Maleficent bowed, just extravagantly enough it could be considered mocking, smirking as her daughter lost control of her magic a bit, clearly shocked at hearing her mother use her title and her _full_ name, "I believe that it's time for me to go." Turning on her heel, she looked back at her daughter, who apparently hadn't planned on a peaceful resolution judging by the shocked look on her face. "To be clear, I am not going to be accosted by the locals for being an escaped villain, right?"

"No," Mal responded. "You are pardoned for all past crimes. You will still be punished if you break the law."

"Of course." Maleficent sniffed as she left. '_I'm counting on it.'_

'_You may have the power for your name, but I want to see if you're ruthless enough for it too.'_

* * *

_Dear Audrey,_

_I must say I am quite impressed. Apparently you have been __**extremely**_ _vocal and proactive in removing the evil queen from her throne. Although I know that you haven't been doing nearly as well since the destruction of Auroria, I'm certain you will succeed._

_It's not everyone who can wield my sceptre after all._

_Should you desire my aid, you need only ask. I have several ideas as to how you can defeat my daughter. You may not trust me, and that is only right, but "the enemy of my enemy…" right?_

_No matter, there's a spell attached on the back of this missive that, should you desire my help, you only need to cast, and I will be summoned to your location. _

_Please do not do so at dawn, I bathe then._

_I await your summons,_

_~M~_

* * *

**Title Reference: Plato**

**Working Title: Victory... not like it matters now, I kinda just fell on this one.**

**Explanation****: ... I really don't know. Blame Aer, check her out on tumblr on Airilymusing. We realized that Mal is half god half fae after D3 and... things spiraled.**

**No excuse I guess.**

**I'm tentatively marking this as 'complete.' If enough people bug me I _might_ return to it later.**

**Might.**

**Of course since this was a muse attack in the first place there might be an unexpected sequel without reader input.**

**But I wouldn't count on it.**

**R&R**


End file.
